Automatic transmitter



April 26, 1949. L. M. POTTS' 2,463,273

AUTOMATIC TRANSMITTER 1 Filed March 21, 1947 2 sheets-sheet 1 INIENTOR LOUIS .M. POTTS, DECEASED BY Z ATTORNEY MARTHA w. c. POTTS,'ExEcuTR|x Patented Apr. 26, 1949 UNITED PATENT OFFICE 2,468,273 AUTGMATEC TRANSMITTER Application March 21, 1947, Serial No. 736,329

4! Claims.

This invention relates to telegraph tape transmitters and particularly to means for automatically feeding a succeeding message tape into transmitting position when a prior message tape has completed transmission of its message.

The present invention is concerned with an automatic tape placement device for tape transmitters which functions to automatically feed a succeeding message tape into transmitting position after a prior message tape has completed transmission of its message. Such an arrangement is especially adapted for use at a central ofiice exchange whereat an attendant who is taking care of a series of transmitters may keep the individual transmitters continuously supplied with tape messages without Waiting for the end of a message being currently transmitted. While a particular transmitter is functioning to send message signals, the attendant may insert the leading end of a new tape and then position a manual control lever to condition the tape placement device for operation. When the end of the message just transmitted is sensed by an end of the message responsive mechanism, the tape placement device automatically feeds the new tape into transmitting position on the tape feed sprocket. During the period in which the change of tapes is taking place, blank feed out signals are automatically transmitted by a special transmitting cam while the transmitter is held inoperative. When the new tape assumes its transmitting position on the tape feeding sprocket, the transmitter resumes operation as before and effects the transmission of the new message. It is thus evident that an attendant may move from one transmitter to the other inserting tapes without waiting for the end of a message in any particular transmitter. In this way, traffic can be handled very efiiciently with the lapsed time between messages reduced to a minimum, or more specifically to the short interval of time required to feed the new tape into transmitting position. Since blank feed out signals are transmitted to the other end of the line during this time to provide space between messages, and such space is necessary in order to readily distinguish one message from another, it is observable that there is no actual loss of time between messages.

An object of the present invention is to provide an automatic tape placement device for tape transmitters wherein a new message tape is automatically fed into transmitting position when a prior message tape has completed transmission of its message.

A further object of theinvention is to provide in a tape transmitter, an automatic tape placement device having manually operable conditioning means which conditions said device to feed a succeeding message tape into transmitting position when a prior message tape has completed transmission of its message.

Another object of the invention is to provide in an automatic tape transmitter, a tape placement device which functions to feed a new message tape into transmitting position when a prior message tape has completed transmission of its message and an auxiliary transmitting means which transmits space out signals while a change of tapes is taking place.

Other objects, features, and advantages of the invention, while not specifically recited above, will appear from the detailed description which follows when read in conjunction with the drawings wherein:

Fig. 1 is a partial elevational view of the transmitter, showing particularly portions of the tape placement device involved in the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a partial sectional view particularly emphasizing the relationship of the tape placement device to the transmitter proper;

Fig. 3 is a detailed view showing particularly the tape feeding finger which forms part of the present invention;

Fig. 4 is a detailed sectional view, illustrating particularly contact operating mechanisms involved in the present invention;

Fig. 5 is a diagram of the circuit arrangement used in the present invention; and

Fig. 6 is a detailed view of a tape guiding means utilized in the present invention.

The present invention is herein shown as particularly adapted for use with a tape transmitter such as is shown in the patent of M. T. Goetz, 2,296,845, dated September 29, 1942. It is understood, however, that the disclosure of the Goetz patent is modified in accordance with the present invention and that for details of the description of the transmitter itself reference should be had to said patent.

In the drawings, numeral ll represents a cons'tantly rotating shaft which is suitably journaled on end walls I2 and I3 of the transmitter and is driven from a gear M as in a standard transmitter. Shaft ll carries a transmitting cam sleeve ll (Fig. 2) which is releasable for continuous rotation by energization of a start clutch magnet I8 not shown in the mechanical part of the drawings' but illustrated in the circuit diagram (Fig. 5). The cam sleeve ll permits the sequential operation of a series of transmitting gooseneck levers I9 (only one of which is shown) which operate associated transmitting contacts 2! in accordance with the positions assumed by their individually allied tape sensing levers 22. In each rotation of cam sleeve ll, a signal code combination is transmitted and as is described in the Goetz patent, a bail 23 mounted 'a'orra common pivot -24 with sensing levers 22,-withdraws pins 26 carried by thesensing levers 22 which in the previous transmitting cycle have sensed a perforation in tape 27. A tape stepping pawl (not shown) is then elfectiveto step ratchet 28 carried by shaft 29 to advance tape feed sprocket 3| which is also carried "-byshaft29 to the next position. This results in 'the advancement of a new row of perforations of tape 21 into transmitting position and bail 23 now. allows the sensing levers 22 by means of their pins 26 to feel the tape for a new selection.

In accordance with the present invention there has (been-added to the constantly rotating shaft ll,-.a;small pinion 33 which is in mesh with an idlergear 3-4. This latter-gear, in turn, drives aggearfi-rwhichisattached to a shaft 31 suitably journaled on the previously identified end walls l2 and I3. Fixedly secured to-shaft 3'! is a-drivmglpart $38 of a ratchet clutch indicated generallyat .39. The driven part 4| of the clutch 39 isslidably mounted about the shaft 31 and in its rest-position isheld-out of engagement with the drivingpart 38, by means of an extension 47 of acIutch throwout lever 4-2 as will immediately hereinafter appear. The clutch throwout lever 42 is pivoted at points 43 and-includes pole pieces 44 which-are-operableunderthe control of a tape placement'clutch magnet46. When magnet 46 ispulsed 'clutchthrowout lever 42 pivots counterclockwise (Fig. 2) ;andthereby removes its extension 41 from engagement with cam surface 48-of a-shoulder '49 which forms-part of the driven part 4| lofithe clutch. Spring now-slides the driven part AH f the clutch intoengagement with the driving part 38 and a sleeve 52 mounted about shaft 1-37 andconnected with thedriving part of theiclutch by notched connection 50 is now released for rotation. 'When clutch magnet 46 is de-energized, extension of .clutch throwout lever :42 will be placed inthepath of camsurface 48 of shoulder 49 and the drivenpart of the clutch becomes automatically "disengaged. It should be mentioned 'at this time that sleeve 52 rotates slower than the transmitting sleeve 1 l and'is'designed to-make only one revolution-to siX revolutions of the transmittingcam sleeve ll for a purposewhich will hereinafter appear.

Mounted on acylinder- 55 fixed to sleeve52 isa segmented tape feedmember fit having a raised feedingsegment 51 which is designed toengage tapes-2'1 andgpress it against :an -idlepressureroller 58zas-will later be described. Roller 58 is supported onbellcrank=59which iszpivoted at 6| and urged in a-clockwise direction (Fig. 2) by means of-aspring 40. This enables a smallarc of the pressure roller togprotrude slightly through an aperture 62 of shelf 63 when bell. crank 59 rests against a'stop-fill. Tomaintain the tape in exact alignment with the-feed sprocketfi l ,:a pair ofztape guide discs :64 and-66 are mounted in any convenient manner'at either side of the cylinder 55. The-.distance betweenguide discs 64 and 66 is just sufilcientto accommodate a width of tape. Pivotally.-supported onaapin fil extending into a cutout portion45 of cylinder '55, is a tape feeding finger li8 lwhichis'normally urged in a counterclockwise (Fig..-2) direction by means of a suit tionas will later be described, newly inserted tape ETA is drawn forward by finger 68 and the feeding segment 51 of member 56 then presses the tape 21A against pressure roller 58 and thereby feeds the tape forward onto the feeding sprocket 3i. For insuring that the tape will be properly directed towards the feeding sprocket 3!, a flared guide 35having a cutout portion 36 is provided.

The cutout portion 30 furnishes clearance for segmented member 56 while its edges 25 act to deflect the tape towards feed sprocket 3i. Segment 5i is just long enough to feed the first feed hole of the new tape 'onto the teeth of feed sprocket 39 in transmittin position. As will be later pointed out in the description, when a change of tapes is takingplace, tape feed ratchet 28 and :sprocket 3!! are freely rotatable so as to facilitate the introduction of a new tape, the feed holes of which automatically find the pins of feed sprocket 3i. After the finger 68 moves a short angulardistance, a pin "carried thereby engages the'highpart of a fixedcam 76 which is suitably mounted about shaft 31. When this occurs, finger G8 is urged in a clockwise direction (Fig. 2) freeing the tape from its graspand allowing the feed to take place solely under the control of segment5-1 of member 56. As the finger 68 continues to rotate itspin 14 will again-engage a low partof the fixed cam '16 and the finger will be returned to its original position.

Also carried on sleeve-52 isa transmitting cam 11 which is designed to send six blank signals .with-start-stop impulses to provide space between messages received at a remote point. .Toprovide the start-stop impulses,'cam 7!! includes six lobes wand since sleeve 52 rotates-only once for each six revolutions of 'transmittingsleeve H, as already indicated, six blank feed out signals will be transmitted when sleeve 52 is released for a single revolution. This is .accomplish'edby'operation of 'follower '10 of cam 11 which ispivoted at 40 and controls the opening and closing of-transmitting contact pair 15 associated with signal line 80.

With particular reference'to Figs. 4 and 5, the conditioning of the tape .placement device for operation in response to an end of message indication will now be given. When transmitting cam sleeve I1 is rotating, transmitting clutch magnet i3 is energizedover the followin circuit: From battery, through the winding of magnet l8, through contact pair 8| (now closed), over lead 82 and through'contacts B3 and 84 (now closed) to ground. The same ground circuit just described extends from lead 82, over lead 86 and through signal lamp 8?, which is now illuminated, to battery. Signal lamp 8'l'indicates at this time that transmission is takin place in the normal manner with a tape being fed by sprocket 3 I.

When itis desired to condition the tape placement-device for operation, the tape is inserted on feeding finger 68 as explained, and amanual control lever 88 having a finger piece 90is operated. This causes the latter lever to'pivot counterclockwise (Fig. 5) about .point 89,-against'the influence of spring 9|. At this time,=ailever 92 which is :pivotally carried at '65 by lever- 88, is

drawn to the left (Fig. 5) by its spring 93 and its upper end moves under and raises u a pivoted lever 54, resulting in the opening of a contact pair 9d and closure of a contact pair 96. Opening of contact pair 94 breaks an obvious circuit extending to signal lamp 91 which is now extinguished and thereby indicates that a new tape has been inserted into the transmitter and is ready for transmission when the previous message tape has been transmitted. Closure of contact pair 96 prepares a circuit for the tape placement clutch magnet 46 as follows: From battery, through closed contact pair 96, through the winding of the clutch magnet 46, over conductor 98 and through contacts 99 and 84 (when closed) to ground.

As described in the Goetz patent, when the end of a message being transmitted is reached, an end of message feeler I9! (Fig. 5) senses such a condition and pivots about point I92 in a clock wise direction. This frees a latch I03 to move about its pivot I96 under the impetus of spring I94. Pin I91 carried by latch H33 now moves against an end of message control lever I98, causing it to pivot counterclockwise and latch up at notch II!) of lever I09 which is pivoted at I II and urged clockwise by a spring IIZ. As a result of the movement of lever I98, contacts 93, 8%, open and contacts 84, 99 are closed. Opening of contacts 83, 84 breaks the circuit to transmitter clutch magnet I8 and extinguishes lamp 81. C- sure of contacts 84, 99 completes the previously described circuit for the tape placement clutch magnet 45. Thus, at this time, cam sleeve I1 is stopped and sleeve 52 is released for a single revolution.

Sleeve 52 carries a cam II3, which after a partial rotation by means of a pin IId moves against projection H6 of lever 92, removing the upper end of this lever from beneath lever 54 and allowing manual control lever 88 to assume its original position. At this time, contact pair 94 will again close, illuminating lamp 9!, and contact pair 96 will reopen breaking the prepared circuit path for clutch magnet 46. Also carried on sleeve 52 is a cam II'I which is designed to operate a follower H8 pivoted at H9 and urged in a clockwise direction by spring I2I. When cam sleeve 52 starts into rotation, follower i It presses against a bar I22 (equivalent to manually operable bar I98 shown in the Goetz patent), to slide it downwardly so that a pin I23 carried thereby moves against lever I09 and thereby frees lever I98 from notch IIEI for movement so that contacts 99, 84 open and contacts 93, B4 are closed. Opening of contacts 99, 84 causes a further break in the circuit for magnet 46 since the circuit is also broken upon opening of contact pair 94. This insures that the clutch throwout lever 42 will be in a position to stop cam sleeve 52 after a single revolution. Closure of contacts 83, 84 prepares a circuit for transmitting clutch magnet I8 which cannot be completed at this time due to the fact'that extension I26 of bar I22 is held downwardly causing contact pair 8| to remain open. This insures that the clutch magnet I8 will be held unoperated until sleeve 52 completes a single revolution. After sleeve 52 has made a single revolution, it will stop and bar I22 will be moved upward by means of a spring I as cam II'I nears its rest position and presents a low part to projection I34 of lever II8. This closes contact pair 8| and therefore energizes clutch magnet I8 over its previously described circuit. The transmitter will now commence transmission from the new mes- 6. sage tape which was fed into transmitting position on feed sprocket 3! upon release of sleeve 52 as already explained. During rotation of sleeve 52, six blank feed out signals are transmitted by cam ll as pointed out above. It will he understood that for a more complete understanding of the end of message sensing mechanism, reference may be had to the previously mentioned Gcetz patent. It will be further understood that no positive feed out mechanism is provided for the message tape which has just been transmitted since at the end of a message, bar lBZ will. move down as described and free a detent (not shown) which engages ratchet 28, so that feed sprocket 3! is free to turn under the weight of the tape which thereby discharges itself from the feed sprocket. As has been mentioned before, bar I22 shown in the present invention is equivalent to bar I93 described in the Goetz patent.

Various changes and modifications may be made in t--e present invention without departing from the spirit and scope thereof.

What is claimed is:

1. A telegraph transmitter including transmitting means, a main feeding means for feeding a message control form, an auxiliary feeding means for feeding a new message control form into transmitting position for advancement by said main feeding means, control form receiving means for receiving the leading edge of a new message control form and a feed member having a segment thereon to frictionally engage the new message control form for causing the advancement of a predetermined length thereof. means for conditioning said auxiliary feeding means for operation, an end of message responsive mechanism effective when the transmission of the message of a prior control form has been completed for disabling said main feeding means and said transmitting means and for rendering said auxiliary feeding means effective to feed the leading end of said new message control form by means of said segment on said feed member into transmitting position to facilitate the further advancement of said new message control form by said main feeding means, and means effective when said new message control form has reached the transmitting position for rendering said transmitting means and said main feeding means operative for transmission of the new message.

2. A telegraph transmitter including transmitting means, a main feeding means for feeding a message control form, an auxiliary feeding means including a form gripping means and a segmented feed member for advancing a new message control form into position for further advancement by said main feeding means, an end of message responsive mechanism effective when the transmission of the message of the prior control form has been completed for disabling said riain feeding means and said transmitting means and rendering said auxiliary feeding means operative to feed the new message control form by means of said segmented member, means for releasing said form gripping means while said segmented member is advancing said new form into transmitting position for further advancement by said main feeding means means effective when the new message form has reached transmitting position for rendering said transmitting means and said main feeding means operative for transmission of the new message.

3. In a telegraph transmitter including means for feeding and rmeans for sensing a message control form, angauxiliary feeding means for advancing-anew message control form into position for further advancementby said first mentioned feeding means, a gripper carried by said auxiliary feeding means for holding a leading end of a new message control form, a roller, a segmented portion on said auxiliary feeding means for cooperating with said roller to frictionally advance the new message control form into position for further advancement by said first mentioned feeding means, and means operable .in response to the sensing by said control formsensing means of an end of message signal in =a,prior control form for actuating said auxiliary feeding means, said gripper releasing the leading end of the control form during the advancement thereof to said first mentioned feeding. means by said segmented portion and roller.

4. In a telegraph transmitter including means for feeding and means for sensing a message control form, an auxiliary feeding means for advancing a new message control form into position for further advancement by said first mentioned feeding means, a gripper carried by said auxiliary feeding means for holding a leading end of a new message controlform, a roller, a segmented portion on said auxiliary feeding-means for cooperating with said roller to frictionally advance the new message control form into position for further advancement by said first mentioned feeding means, means operable in response to the sensing by said control form sensing means of an end of message signal in a prior control form for actuating said auxiliary feeding means, and means operable during the advancement'of said control form by said segmented portion and roller for causing said gripper to release the leading end of the new message control form.

MARTHA W. C. POTTS, Erecutrix Under the 'Last Will and Testament of Louis M. Potts, Deceased.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

